In 1992, a small village owner became the richest man in the village by owning a car.

Chapter 86 Komatsu PW40 Wheeled Excavator

"Master, how much would it cost to fix the engine of my car?" The man patted the body of his car. "My car is only faulty because of the engine. Everything else is perfect. You can ask around in town. There isn't a single excavator like mine in the whole of Luhe Town."

Yu Dawei was utterly speechless. This thing was really not very useful in Northeast China. With only a small wheeled excavator with a four-cylinder engine, how much power could it possibly have? He estimated that it would be completely useless in Northeast China before winter even arrived and the ground would freeze over.

The only thing Yu Dawei saw was this small wheeled excavator. They would dig pits when they were bringing electricity to every village. There would also be a tree planting project in the next year or two in the Hetao area, funded by the government, which should make them a profit.

Besides that, all Yu Dawei could think of was to finish these two projects and then fix the exterior surfaces properly. It would be even better if he could do sheet metal work and painting, but if that wasn't possible, just painting the exterior surfaces would be fine too.

Then, dump it in the city's rental market and sell it.

Even this little thing is highly regarded in the county's rental market.

“Brother, I’ve lived in a big city for years and worked with a master excavator repairman.” Yu Dawei patted the vehicle. “This isn’t just a matter of fixing the engine.”

The man's chubby face hardened, and he looked at Yu Dawei with some displeasure: "Don't talk nonsense. There are neighbors around here. It wouldn't be good if they heard us."

"I spent a lot of money to buy this excavator. You're too young and don't know its value at all."

The man opened the small door in the middle of the driver's side and pointed to the black seats: "Look at the configuration inside this driver's seat, these seats are leather! The gear lever is covered with a woven cover, and see that cup holder in the corner? The previous owner even welded it on!"

Yu Dawei followed the direction the man was pointing and frowned deeply. This guy was a complete novice. Was this all he looked at when looking at a car?

You're not the one driving the car, so why would you care if there are cup holders in the driver's seat or if the seats are leather? These leather seats are clearly leather; I might be surprised if they were genuine leather.

"How about that? Shocked, huh?" The man turned around and saw Yu Dawei's astonished expression, and couldn't help but smile.

"Hmm." Yu Dawei didn't know what to say at this moment, so he could only nod reluctantly.

This guy is like someone whose heart is about to be bypassed, yet he insists on showing off his eight-pack abs. What's the point?
He's almost gone!
"Didn't anyone remind you that there's something wrong with this machine?" Yu Dawei turned to look at the man, then walked to the counterweight of the excavator, squatted down, and looked inside.

"Yes, what's the problem? No problem, it's perfectly fine!" The man's expression was clearly a little unnatural, and he quickly changed the subject, asking, "Just tell me, can you fix this car engine? How much would it cost?"

“Brother, this isn’t about the money. Even if the engine is fixed, the car will still be unusable soon.” Yu Dawei crawled out from under the car, stood up, and looked at the other person sincerely. “Of course, if you think it’s okay, then it’s okay. I won’t bother you any longer, I’m leaving now.”

After Yu Dawei finished speaking, he turned around and walked towards his four-wheeled vehicle.

He just carefully examined the entire interior of the car from underneath, and how should I put it? Speechless.

From the outside, it looks a lot like the Komatsu PW40 wheeled excavator. However, in his memory, the Komatsu PW40 did not have a cab at all. It only had a canopy to keep out the wind and rain, which consisted of two iron bars extending from the back of the vehicle with an iron plate welded on top.

As it turns out, this PW40 is quite something; although the cab is small, it's made to be more luxurious than the cab of his old Hitachi.

Moreover, upon closer inspection, many of the parts inside are not original Komatsu parts; they were all temporarily assembled, including the engine.

It's fair to say that only the shell of this Komatsu PW40 is genuine; the rest is a hodgepodge of parts from various manufacturers.

Even a seasoned mechanic like Yu Dawei, with a lifetime of repair experience, couldn't help but feel a chill run down his spine when he glanced inside the car.

Yu Dawei was even curious to know who the guy who assembled this excavator was. He was incredibly talented; he managed to piece it together and make it work. After all, if it didn't work, no one would buy it.

The fact that the guy next to me was able to buy it means that the excavator can definitely move and even do work.

That's amazing! A repair genius!
However, Yu Dawei wouldn't dare to buy such a car. It's basically an Audi shell with parts from a car like the Alto. If an ordinary person bought this wheel excavator, they'd be stuck with it.

"Hey? Dude, don't be in such a hurry to leave." Seeing that Yu Dawei was about to leave, the man became anxious and quickly stepped in front of him to block his way.

"What? There's nothing wrong with your car, why are you stopping me, a mechanic?" Yu Dawei feigned surprise.

The man scratched his head awkwardly, looked around, and found that there weren't many people out and about in the village at the moment. Then he whispered to Yu Dawei, "Buddy, this vehicle of mine is indeed a problem. Can you do me a favor? If anyone needs a rotary excavator, please introduce me to it. You'll definitely get a good kickback."

“This isn’t just a problem car. It was definitely a car with a story at first, and then it became an accident car. In short, it’s not a good car.” Yu Dawei shook his head. “To be honest, I originally had the idea of ​​buying a wheeled excavator, but yours is really not good enough.”

"Did any qualified excavator mechanic tell you about the condition of this machine?" Yu Dawei asked again.

“Yes, a craftsman named Zhang Mazi from the town told me that the distributor and engine in this vehicle are not from the original Komatsu.” The man sighed, “We didn’t know the construction machinery business was so complicated.”

Yu Dawei rolled his eyes. Good heavens, why didn't he ask a knowledgeable master for guidance? He had to find someone who was only good at nothing.

"Let me be blunt with you. Apart from the body shell, none of the other parts of your car are from Komatsu. The engine is from Liebherr, the distributor is from Changjiang, and the small, broken pump is from some foreign brand that you can't tell the difference from, but there are definitely signs of disassembly."

Yu Dawei stared at the fake Komatsu PW40 and shook his head helplessly: "Even your small cab was welded on later and then attached with a small crane. Look at the four corners, there aren't even two fixing screws."

"The mechanic who assembled this excavator is a conscientious person. Don't be fooled by the small size of the cab; it's made with plenty of materials. Otherwise, without the fixing screws, a strong wind could blow the canopy away."

The slightly overweight man stood to the side, his face growing paler with each word, clutching his chest with his right hand, his heart aching so much he could hardly breathe.

"Where did you get this car from?" Yu Dawei asked curiously. In the 1990s, people with such skills were not common.

"Sigh, Dingcheng, Yushui County. A friend from a village introduced me to this place. I bought this second-hand excavator for 1 yuan. I even tried it out on the spot, and it was really powerful when it was working. Who would have thought that the engine would break down so soon?" The man's mouth was bitter. From January until now, he hadn't even made a penny from this machine.

The problem is, this money isn't all his own! His sister came to see him a couple of days ago, and if he hadn't pretended to be sick to get away with it, he really wouldn't know what to do. Yu Dawei felt quite sympathetic. In the 1990s, a really good excavator wasn't cheap, costing hundreds of thousands, or even millions in mines. Second-hand excavators were cheaper, but a truly good one without any problems wouldn't be cheap either.

The same applies to the prices of small excavators on the market, including wheeled excavators. If it is a perfectly fine, original imported used Komatsu wheeled excavator, it can definitely be sold for 70,000 to 80,000 yuan.

His old Hitachi was a result of the previous owner being fooled, just like this guy in front of him pretending to know what he was talking about, and in the end, he ended up getting an old Hitachi for free.

Currently, the main market in Luhe Town is still motorcycle repair, and there are very few people who truly understand excavators and construction machinery. This is arguably Yu Dawei's biggest advantage at present.

As for this car, it's completely like a "four-legged creature" from the novel Investiture of the Gods.

Can this car be repaired? Yes, it can be repaired.

Can it be driven? Yes, it can be driven.

Will it break? Absolutely, it will break.

Yu Dawei had seen a few modified excavators in his previous life. At most, they would just replace the original parts of other models from the same brand. He had seen them modified to this extent, but in the end, they all ended up as scrap metal.

His old Hitachi was able to be sold as scrap metal partly because it was dirty and troublesome, and also because the previous owner was rich and powerful, so the owner didn't care.

This "four-legged beast" is different; it sells scrap metal and that's exactly what it is—completely useless.

"Dude, didn't you want to buy a wheeled excavator? How about you take a look at mine?" The man's eyes sparkled with anticipation. "To be honest, I've been thinking of selling this wheeled excavator for the past few days. On the one hand, I went to town and found several excavator repairmen, but they all said they couldn't repair the engine of this kind of wheeled excavator. On the other hand, I was really afraid that if I repaired it, it would cause problems again."

“But you’re different. You’re a mechanic, so you’ll definitely be able to fix this car. I heard there’s a construction site nearby. Once it’s fixed, you can go there and get plenty of work.” The man became more and more excited as he spoke, and he even helped Yu Dawei plan a perfect route.

Yu Dawei shook his head and denied it: "It's true that I have work to do, and it's true that I'm a car mechanic, but you yourself said that this car is bound to break down again even if it's fixed. It's so annoying to keep patching it up."

"No way! I'll sell it to you cheap, okay?"

"How cheap can it be? I can tell you with certainty that this wheeled excavator is worth at most scrap metal, because nobody dares to repair it or use it." Yu Dawei's words weighed heavily on the other person's heart, like several mountains pressing down on him, making it hard for him to breathe.

The man knew that the car wouldn't fetch much money in the hands of an expert, but selling it as scrap metal would be too much of a loss.

Good iron is only 60 cents a pound these days. This excavator only weighs 6 tons. If it were sold as scrap iron, it would only be worth a little over 7,200 yuan. It's a total loss that will leave it with nothing!
That's why he didn't choose to sell it for scrap metal, but instead drove the car back.

If he happens to run into an amateur like him, and they manage to trick him into selling it at half price, wouldn't that work too?

But when will this "what if" happen? In the end, it might just mean being relegated to selling as scrap.

"If you're really serious about buying, then name your price. We're not stingy people. If the price is right, then take it!" The man gritted his teeth, his eyes unusually determined.

Seeing the other party's determination, Yu Dawei turned to look at the wheeled excavator beside him: "My buddy runs a scrap metal recycling station, so I know the price of iron very well. These days, it's good if it can fetch 62 cents. Your truck can sell for 7,300 or 7,400 yuan as scrap metal. I'll round it up for you, 8,000 yuan."

"Eight thousand?! No way, no way, buddy, I bought this car for over eighty thousand, and you're just rounding it down to zero!" Although the man gritted his teeth and was prepared, he still couldn't help but feel the pain when the other party actually made the offer. He felt like his heart was bleeding every second.

"Then you should wait a bit longer. Maybe someone who doesn't know anything about cars will take a liking to it." Yu Dawei turned to leave, but he was actually just bluffing. If the village knew that electricity would be available in the future, some fool would definitely want the car and buy it for a high price.

Given the fact that electricity has been provided to every village, the probability of this happening is definitely not low.

Yu Dawei was betting that they wouldn't know in the next few days that no one would care about this excavator, and that he could leave calmly and without a care in the world.

"Don't go, don't go, buddy, can you let me think about it some more?" The man really couldn't accept the price.

This is worse than a broken bone; it's like being beaten to death with a single blow.

"Okay then, I'll come back tomorrow. If you're willing to pay eight thousand yuan, we can settle the transaction directly. If not, forget it, consider it a wasted trip." Yu Dawei thought for a moment and calmly explained the plan to the other party.

"Okay! I'll definitely give you an answer tomorrow." The man readily agreed, hoping to reassure the other party so he would have more time to think it over.

Yu Dawei smiled and nodded. After the two introduced themselves, he left.

The morning wasn't wasted here. Is this Komatsu PW40 worth working on? Actually, it is!
From a business perspective, although Yu Dawei belittled the small excavator in front of the other party, they might be scratching their heads after taking possession of the vehicle, but he wouldn't be particularly troubled.

Although it's troublesome, no less troublesome than when repairing that old Hitachi, it's summer now, which is the easiest time to get work done. Plus, it's just a small wheeled excavator, so as long as it can be compatible with Komatsu parts, there's a very high chance it will work.

Because they are small, the repair time is greatly reduced, and there is no need to use cranes or anything like that. A chain hoist weighing one or two tons can easily remove them.

The most important thing right now is to get the car at a low price, and then quickly contact Boss Liang to find some suitable parts, preferably a complete set.

Yu Dawei figured out the key point and drove towards the scrap metal recycling station where Brother Duan worked. In the end, he would still have to trouble his older brother for a place to repair cars. It would be more convenient to repair cars in the town than in the village, and he wouldn't be disturbed.

He planned to discuss it with Brother Duan in the afternoon and have him act as a third-party witness again tomorrow. This time, Yu Dawei planned to write the sales contract on paper in detail, and he also prepared ink pads.

He was worried that the other party would come looking for him after they found out about the village's electrification project. Although it wouldn't do any good anyway, being careful would save him a lot of trouble.

(End of this chapter)